The present invention relates to a lubricating device for an escalator or a moving walkway, wherein a step belt of the escalator or a plate belt of the moving walkway is guided between lateral borders and wherein at least one lubricant container is provided at at least one escalator step of the step belt or moving walkway plate of the plate belt and is connected with lubrication points for the step or plate.
Lubricating devices of the identified general type have the purpose of preventing the increase of friction and the development of noise between the escalator/moving walkway base plates and the step or plate belt as a result of environmental contaminating deposits, which are virtually unavoidable, and which may include dust, abrasives from subway brakes, etc., which collect at base plates of the escalator or moving walkway, as well as deposits from material deterioration.
Japanese patent specification JP 5319767 discloses a lubricating device for escalators by means of which guide rails for the step belt of an escalator can be lubricated For this purpose there is provided a solenoid valve which is supplied with power by a battery and which is arranged at an outlet opening of an oil container fastened to an escalator step. A pipe, by way of which the guide rail for the rear wheel of the escalator step is lubricated, is connected to the valve. A flexible hose, through which the lubricant of the guide rail for the front wheel of the escalator step is fed, branches from the pipe. A timer is provided for control of the valve. Fault-free lubrication at the sides of the escalator is not guaranteed.
Japanese patent specification JP 08225285 discloses another lubricating device for an escalator, in which lubricating agent holders are provided at the side edges of the rear side of the tread and riser of an escalator step. Bristles, which form brushes and which contact the side walls of the escalator, protrude out of the lubricating agent holders. A lubricating agent container fastened to the rear side of the tread is connected with the lubricating agent holders or brushes by way of pipes and wicks inserted therein. A relatively large amount of lubricating agent is consumed by the long brush formed by means of the bristles; a wide lubricating track, which is only partly covered by the step belt, is formed.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a lubricating device of the general kind set forth in which sliding pads or brushes are utilized to lubricate base plates. Wear of the sliding pads is reduced and damage to the base plates is prevented. The construction of the lubricating device is very simple and therefore economical. The lubricant track formed by the sliding pads or brushes is covered and relatively narrow and therefore lubricant-conserving.
The foregoing and other objects are met by a lubricating device in which lubricant points are formed by a lubricant dispenser means in the form of lubricating sliding pads which are arranged at the escalator step or moving walkway plate and which project slightly beyond the side edges of the step or plate. The pads have a bore through which the lubricant is transferred to base plates forming the lateral borders for the steps or plates.
The lubricant dispenser means may alternatively be formed by brushes which are arranged at the escalator step or moving walkway plate and which project slightly beyond the side edges of the step or plate and have a bore through which the lubricant is transferred into the bristles of the brush and therefrom to the base plates.
As those skilled in the art will recognize that the object, effect and execution of the present invention are essentially identical in application to both escalators and moving walkways, for the sake of simplicity only its application to escalators will be described hereinafter.